CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) -- Thursday is Read Across America Day, and students and teachers in the area are getting in on all the fun reading has to offer. 

Read Across America Day is a day to celebrate the joys of reading, with schools in the area working to create and foster reading, and show students all kinds of books.

At Greenbrier Elementary School, students have seen book displays to get exposed to more genres and characters, and become excited about reading.

And the student's favorite activity is their book challenge, where students try to read 1,000 books before the end of March.

“It’s just a way to encourage reading and encourage a love of reading, and hopefully help kids to become a lifelong reader is kind of our main goal,” said Katie Plunkett, a librarian at Greenbrier Elementary School.

At Nathanael Greene Elementary School, students are celebrating in lots of fun and educational ways.

They are hosting a spirit week, where kids can dress up in wacky hair-dos or their favorite hat, have guest readers come in and read to classrooms, and host a book fair, where students can see a variety of books. 

“A week like this just really gives a little more excitement to that, it really gives us a chance to show off the fun stuff that maybe gets a little bit more hidden in the library,” said Abby Courtney, a librarian at Nathanael Greene Primary School.

But Read Across America Day is not just a day. Teachers are hoping to make this day more meaningful.

“In the long run, it really does branch out and show us, kind of the windows and mirrors analogy there, where we can not only see ourselves, but really learning about other people and other people’s point of view, and it broadens their perspective and their world view,” added Plunkett. 

“And that actually builds more bridges in our brain, which helps our kids read better, and faster, and be better, stronger readers,” added Courtney.